Is there anything more beautiful than a woman with pants? Don't answer that. Do you see that glob of green paint on Lady Jaye's boot? It isn't a factory error, it's brain-meats from the last mutant Neo Viper she stomped the gooey center out of! Join us in this review to find out how Lady Jaye (from the recent GI Joe Box Set) is making boob-knives popular again. 

Name: Lady Jaye (Covert Operations)
Line: 25th Anniversary GI Joe 5-Pack #2
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Released: 2009
Scale: 3.75 in. (figure is about 3.80 in. tall)
Accessories: Rifle, Javelins, Spear, Quiver, Belt

 

     Lady Jaye has a simple design; shirt, pants, boots, and awesome hair! Seeing some of the old cartoons, I didn't see how well the 'do would translate into plastic, but it's beautiful. It's neat enough to look styled but shaggy enough to show how rugged and manl- uh, womanly she is, lol. I will say, I'm disappointed the face sculpt is based on those old cartoons, those characters look okay but can't hold a flaming javelin to the more modern comic-book versions of the characters. And it's not just because I want to see an action figure of Stripper Lady Jaye (maybe it is), I like the face on this figure, it's strong but still feminine. Anyway, can't complain too much, this is a necessary figure for anyone wanting to complete their animated G.I. Joe/50's-hairdo-chick collection.
      The figure isn't overly-curvy, the clothing is form-fitting but not to the point where it just looks like Ms. Jaye would look naked if painted flesh. To the contrary, the figure is finely-detailed with lots of folds and seams where appropriate. It really does look like care was taken when shaping this sculpt. This reminds me of the Logan (X-Men: Origins) figure, I think I'd melt into a puddle of goo if I saw a real woman looking as good in these clothes, just too sexy.
      The accessories are as attractive as the figure thanks to their equally-refined scultps. The strap on the quiver can get obnoxious because of how it rests, but it has a certain sweet-spot you have to find. I think the sculpted belt on the pants looks odd without a buckle, but the removeable belt has one to fill the void. The most annoying thing about the sculpt is those little letters and numbers used to indicate which is a "Left" and "Right" piece. The placing for them SUCKS on this figure, they're too visible. 

Sculpt Score: 9 / 10

 

     The job on the shirt could have been better-executed, the sleeves and torso don't match. Torso is cast in green while the sleeves are flesh painted over with light green, then given a wash of darker green. Okay, why would they paint the sleeves with such a light color? Why didn't they just paint the sleeves with the darker green in the first place? The torso also seems to have a wash of the darker green, and it works well, very subtle. There's an accidental giant glob of green on the left boot, UGH! Let me tell you, this is some tough stuff! I tried scraping it off and only hurt my fingernail, I had to cut some of it off then use some chemicals to scrub away the remainder. I want this paint for customizing! Hasbro, please sell us a few buckets of this stuff!
     The neck is painted, but the color-matching is acceptable. The hair is begging for some high-lights, and it's sad that the tiny fringe of hair on the forehead (just above the eye-brows) goes un-noticed because the paint simply sweeps across it, instead of defining the individual strands. Pants are mostly painted (just not the knees) and give the figure that heavy feel of a quality toy. The rest of the body is cleanly-painted, among the best I've seen.
     A solid dry-brushing is what this entire figure needs to be super-awesome, the blocks of color look nice but don't do the sculpt any justice. Of course, you could always try Hasbro's inventive lighting to create shadows and pop details. I'm very disappointed with the eyes, they're brown dots without irises or depth at all, but at least they're neat.

Paint Score: 8 / 10

    

    All standard-issue G.I. Joe articulation is present, the only thing missing is the side-tilt in the torso. Why didn't Hasbro add it in? It should be even cheaper to make the figure with it because it uses slightly less plastic. Or maybe the sculptor flaked out at the last minute? He created this wonderful figure and then said No! I can't work anymore! I have a date tonight! Damn you, sculptor-tooling-person.
    The head can't face up because of the sculpted collar, but it looks cool, so no complaining, kay? Let's complain about the hands though, they keep popping-off. The pegs there are thin enough that they flex and pop the hand out anytime you move something in Jaye's hands too roughly. The articulation isn't too visible, but certain areas like the green disks in the feet are unignorable. The belt slung low helps hide the hip articulation, the pivot at the torso and hinges at the knees are semi-hidden by all the folds in the shirt. All joints are very tight, there's almost no pose this figure can't hold on its own.

Articulation Score: 7 / 10

     I don't even know Lady Jaye's history and I'm still loving this figure! Sometimes you get sick of every female action figure having huge cleavage and revealing clothing [TAO: Yeah right!] [Real TAO: Ha ha], this figure has neither but still holds a certain appeal. There's no shame in standing in line to buy this toy. There's no hiding it from the cute chick standing next to you because it's a "Topless Wonder Woman Variant", you can flaunt this toy in her face and proclaim how sensitive to women's feelings you are.
    Everyone loves seeing a spear pierce a Cobra Trooper's chest, Lady Jaye delivers that lovely image. You know a chick is badass when you offer her a gun and says No, I'll take that pointy stick instead. Yeah, that one, the one with a rocket strapped to it. And give me a knife too, I want to strap it to my boobs so I can stab people with them.

Fun Score: 7 / 10

 

     This Lady Jaye is part of a 5-Pack, the cost per figure is almost $6 at retail, which is cheaper than buying individual G.I. Joe figures. At $6 per figure, the price is acceptable, though that's with a customizer's slant. Every part is useful in some way, lots of great sculpts to work with. If you can't find it at retail, then I wouldn't bother buying the set online because it'll be over-priced. Lady Jaye can sell for $10+ by herself, so if you buy the set, you get 4 figures more, 2 animals, and accessories for the price of 1.5 Lady Jayes. Not too bad when looked-at like that, but I still think $10 loose is still too high for a G.I. Joe.

Value Score: 6 / 10 

9 / 10 - Fantabulous sculpt, nothing looks wonky.

8 / 10 - Clean, great at first glance, but has paint-matching problems.

7 / 10 - Bummer about the missing side-to-side torso movement, limits some poses.

7 / 10 - Cool hair, cool chick, people getting impaled is always entertaining, it's in our blood! 

6 / 10 - At retail, this 5-pack isn't a bad deal, assuming you don't have any of the figures.

  78/ 100 - This is a Good Toy

Not a perfect G.I. Joe figure but it doesn't disappoint, much.

-DrNightmare

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